FR. RON ROLHEISER, omi

There's a particularly poignant line in the account of Jesus' death which says that, when he died, "the veil in the sanctuary was torn from top to bottom." I remember, as a boy picturing it literally, and thinking: "Now they'll know what a terrible thing they've done!"

FR. RON ROLHEISER, omi

Several years ago, in Canada's prairies, not far from where I was born and raised, a man named Robert Latimer killed Tracy, his severely-handicapped daughter. He put her into the family truck, hooked a tube to the exhaust-emission, sealed the windows and doors and let her fall asleep.

FR. RON ROLHEISER, omi

We speak of one section of the Gospels, that which narrates Jesus' life from the Last Supper until his death and burial, as chronicling his passion. On Good Friday, the lector begins the Gospel reading with the words: "The Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ According to John."

FR. RON ROLHEISER, omi

A number of years ago, a young man came to me because he was in crisis: He had been having an affair with his girlfriend and she had become pregnant. For a variety of reasons, marriage was impossible. The pregnancy would have an irrevocable impact on a series of lives, his girlfriend's, his own, their families', not to mention the child who would be born.

FR. RON ROLHEISER, omi

The cross of Christ is like a carefully cut diamond. Every time you turn it in the light, you get a different sparkle. It means so many things: Its depths can never be fully fathomed. More meaning always spills over.

FR. RON ROLHEISER, omi

Twenty years ago, I wrote a book on loneliness. I was young then, lonely myself, restless like all young people, and still searching for many things. So, despite leaning heavily on Augustine, Aquinas, John of the Cross and Karl Rahner for my insights, the book was probably as much autobiography as spirituality or theology.